IT'S A NEW DAY FOR THE SPACE BOUNTY EXPRESS... And our crew has a CARGO PROBLEM. In that their shipment is now AWAKE and now a decision must be made on whether or not to actually deliver it as per the contract, or... face the consequences. Applejack and it's crew are currently docked at a shady spaceport on the moon of Rigella to get repairs on recent damages, resupply, pick up new cargo and... figure out this current problem. The crew are able to step out to the open air market there on the dock to stretch their legs, with instructions to get back to the ship within three hours.
Spirit — Today at 11:02 AM
Malika got up all sore and groaned. Well, so much for not having the time or means to ask where she should sleep... But they got up nonetheless, stretching majorly. "Repairs,'' they mumbled. Like a half awake zombie, they started to stumble through the ship to go look for anything that needed repairs. That's what they'd be doing; wandering through, repairing and maintaining whatever they saw on the spot.
littlekreen — Today at 11:13 AM
Flopping on the bed of the cabin Jaunt was in might make it apparent that the red tank squeezed in between parts of the ceiling with red tubes and vents was something else. The noise and movement waking a tank that pivots two main eyes down at them then stuffs his face back where it came form. He slept wherever there was room and people had a bad habit of screaming him awake if he didn't see them first. The captain didn't seem to appreciate him occupying the cabin doorway though. Today he was in one of his containers mounted on the ceiling throughout the ship and inspecting his many, many, weapons. A particular Preator hand cannon he liked and needed calibration even if he couldn't use it on the ship without punching through a wall. He turned as someone thumped into the rough rubbery exterior of his alligator-like abdomen occupying half the hallway, "Hello? Does someone need something?"
Zarko Straadi — Today at 11:17 AM
Emry had detached her fighter from the fighter-dock and landed it next to the
Applejack. This gave her the chance to get into the fighter's cargo compartment and get out her stuff. With backpack slung over a shoulder and tool box in hand, she went to pick out a billet. She'd sorta picked out the one next to the port fighter dock, but hadn't actually been in it yet. She opened the door and turned on the light, which flickered to life like someone waking from a deep sleep. It was a small room, two one-person beds (for a pilot/co-pilot team), footlockers, and some storage cabinets. Emry coughed a little. It could definitely use some dusting. But for now: get her stuff put away, and find the
galley!
Ochalla — Today at 11:17 AM
Wes was glad to disembark the ship. He had never felt claustrophobic in a ship before, but with the realization of who was the Captain after signing the contract and realizing he was only being paid Chief Engineer wage and was not actually the Chief he needed to stretch his legs so to speak. That and he had a list of supplies to pick up.
Diana Ò◇ÓOP — Today at 11:19 AM
Captain Jezebel MacBeth hadn't gotten many answers out of the cargo - uh, Amelia - likely as the girl couldn't seem to remember how she got in the box to begin with. Which surely was a problem if this was a case of sentient trafficking... The Captain wouldn't put it past the Big Boss to do some under the table deals, especially lately when the business was doing so poorly.For now, the Captain was trying to make contact with that Big Boss to ask about their cargo. What SHOULD they do and exactly how screwed were they? While the crew got to stretch their legs or do their own tasks, she was presently trying to get this call to connect across the cosmos.
Ochalla — Today at 11:20 AM
Amelia was obviously nervous about this whole notion of being cargo, or at least that was the only logical explanation for her jitteriness. She had been very unclear and insisted uncertain about her whole situation. But she was curious as she kept looking around the ship in the oddest spots.
Spirit — Today at 11:21 AM
Unlike many people probably would, according to Alex who had downloaded some data, Malika would mostly stick to the ship. This was only their first day here, and the ship really did need repairs. Besides, what could they possibly pick up? They didn't even have any money. Alex, however, argued it might be interesting to see literal outer space... But Malika was fine. They were
fine. They had Alex, their weapon and their mask. That's all they ever really... got. Yeah. They were fine. Oh, and tools. At the moment, they were busy crossing some wires, the panel carefully put down but still cluttering the spot next to them. Now, if they did this carefully enough, they may even get away without getting shocked!
Zarko Straadi — Today at 11:22 AM
Ekadzati caught up with Wes with a few jogging steps. She too had a shopping list, of medical supplies the ship would hopefully not be needing. Hopefully. "Good day. I am Ekadzati. It is a pleasure to meet you," she said. She also had an ulterior motive for looking around the marketplace: get an idea of how much Ministry activity there might be here. This didn't
look like the sort of place they frequented; rather the opposite. But one could not be too sure. Also, in case Wes needed any backup...
Lucky, Phantom of the Discord — Today at 11:26 AM
CHAOS had taken its gooey self out of the robot body to look around for a new friend to borrow their body
littlekreen — Today at 11:29 AM
Jaunt pivoted around his prodigious field of view to figure out where the prodding came from when he spied two arms nearby in an access tube and a panel sitting on the flat space of his rough leathery thorax. The skin was somewhat numb as well but there seemed to be tools there. Jaunt's voice came from his transceiver as a spidery leg it was stuck to came into view, "Do you need me to stay here long, False Matriarch?"
Ochalla — Today at 11:30 AM
Wes extended his hand. "Wes Montoya, a pleasure." He then pointed to his left. "I believe this might be my first stop." The shop looked very clean and pristine compared to its surroundings and not like a normal mechanical shop.
Zarko Straadi — Today at 11:33 AM
Ekadzati took his hand, gave him a subtle smile with the shake, then examined the shop. It didn't look like a regular mechanic shop, so she wondered if it might contain any of the items on her list.
Ochalla — Today at 11:38 AM
Inside there were several frosted panels with placards indicating small electronic components. Each seemed priced excessively high. "Hate having to barter," Wes whispered to Ekadzati.
Spirit — Today at 11:41 AM
Meanwhile, Malika shut the wires and checked something off a list in their watch. "Great, okay, next up, deliver rapport.""That you did not need to make.'' Alex chimed in. "But still did!'' Malika stubbornly insisted, before speedwalking to where they had met the Captain the first time. Now, what did she say again? Ah yes. "Captain, erm, Jez?'' Now, that just felt so informal... Malika cleared their throat. "Not sure if you're here, but I did write up a rapport-'' "I helped.'' "Majorly, yes. I'll just... I'm just gonna leave it here if that's okay? And if you're NOT here, and I'm talking to air... well, then I guess you'll find it later. Of course, this is just my point of view, though. I can't make a report for the other crew members.''
Zarko Straadi — Today at 11:44 AM
Ekadzati nodded. "It does seem like a needlessly complicated way to arrange a transaction," she whispered back.
Diana Ò◇ÓOP — Today at 11:44 AM
"This is Captain Macbeth calling in, come in headquarters," Jezzy repeated into the coms, as she leaned against the console in the flight room.
"Haaaay, can't come to coms right now, having my lunch." "Damnit Janet, we have a situation. I need to talk to Big Boss."
"Boss isn't in today, which is totes awesome cause I finally get to clean out the employee fri-"Jez sighed heavily, muting the com when Malika made her presence known. "Thanks, kid. If you haven't already, you should check out the port while we have a chance. Once we get out into space again, we're gonna be there awhile. Might not have a chance like this to run loose for a few days."
littlekreen — Today at 11:44 AM
The transciever slowly receeded back towad Jaunt's front as he latched it and reached backward to pick up Malika's plate with all the tools sitting on it with his back legs. The curved black tips of the cruor spider legs glued to it with a reflex and carefully lifted it up and to the side so the access panel wasn't resting on his butt. He started pulling weapons from his hidden container and holstered them to two holsters on his underside.
Spirit — Today at 11:46 AM
Malika tilted their head. Situation... well... that certainly didn't sound good? "Oh, yeah, well, there's still a lot to be done around here and I need to fix the damages. Plus, I have no money so... It doesn't really have any use.'' "I say it does,'' Alex said. Malika just shook their head. "Nah, I'll just... go and fix the ship. It's fine.'' With a nod of respect, Malika left the Captain to deal with whatever 'situation' there was, making a note not to disturb her anymore today. And after that, Malika would go to the galley to make a new, up to date scan from the chore chart.
littlekreen — Today at 11:47 AM
A backpack for the massive spider more resembled saddlebags and his in particular had a few fittings for an actual saddle. Though it had more straps in small loops as the climber tended to travel in six dimensions of freedom. He started walking his way across the ceilings to the spaceport turning the corner to pass the galley and leave the ship.
Zarko Straadi — Today at 11:49 AM
Once Emry got her gear stowed, she headed out into the ship in search of food. Some narrow corrridors, a couple storage spaces, and---GIANT SCARY SPIDER, coming around the corner just as she was about to reach the door to the galley. "AAH-hahaha, uh, nice to meet you," she said, trying to cover up the interrupted squeal.
Spirit — Today at 11:51 AM
Malika looked up as Jaunt came by, greeting him. "Oh, hey Jaunt.'' "Going out?'' Alex asked. "Lucky.'' The watch started to vibrate. "Take me with youuuu!'' Alex dramatically exclaimed. This led Malika to snort. "Please. Don't be so dramatic,'' they laughed. "We both know you can't-'' This time, the buzz came way more intensely. Yup, good for Alex. Because Malika was TOTALLY about to ruin the secret of an AI in their mind. Alex was way better at covering them. "...
Why you can't go,'' Malika corrected. Then, they heard a squeal behind them and jumped, hand already flying towards their weapon but quickly relaxing as it was just that girl. "Oh hey,'' Malika greeted. And then "Oh! Hey!'' They walked up and reached out a hand with an attempted smile. "I still needed to thank you for yesterday. Without you, I don't think I'd have held the airlock...'' They totally would've. Alex told them to say this. Plus, it was just nice and Malika would feel bad if they didn't.
littlekreen — Today at 11:51 AM
Two pedipalps absently reached down to move a bang of emry's displaced hair neatly aside in the gardner habit of unconscious fussing, "Hello, false matriarch. Good to see you. Do you want anything while I am having my weapons serviced?"
Diana Ò◇ÓOP — Today at 11:53 AM
This crew is going to be a whole problem, thought Jez as she watched Malika leave. Sighing again, she flipped the coms back on. "Janet, tell Biggy to contact me ASAP. It's an emergecy." "Sure thing! How you doing with Wes on board, huh? I bet THAT is all kinds of--"Jez shut off the coms immediately, not interested in the slightest about Janet's opinions on her personal life. In the meantime, while the fate of Amelia was in limbo, the ship NEEDED new cargo or this crew wasn't going to get paid. Thus Jazzy left the cockpit to gear up and hunt them down a new contract.
Spirit — Today at 11:54 AM
Malika turned their head towards Jaunt, speaking over their shoulder. "Oh, hey, Jaunt. If you need any tinkering, I can help, you know. I don't know how much it costs out there, but if you'd let me -and it's okay if not!- I could totally help with your weapon's upkeep. For free!'' They offered. "I'd just have to learn the schematics and whatnot, but-'' "I'd take them to a shop, Jaunt.'' Alex chimed in. "The last time Malika tried to figure out a weapon... Weeell....'' They frowned down at their watch. "Hey, that's besides the point! Besides, no one got hurt.'' "If you don't count being flinged across the entire room and against a concrete wall hurt... then, sure! No one got hurt.''Pouting and with a grumble, Malika just turned back to the girl in front of them, hand still held out.
Zarko Straadi — Today at 11:56 AM
Emry flinched a little at the pedipalps, but decided that standing her ground was best, until he spoke. "Wha--" Emry looked over her shoulder--nobody there who might be a 'false matriarch.' She tured back; the spider's round, unblinking eyes were regarding
her! In an instant, she decided that being an impostor matriarch, whateverthehell he meant by that, was a pretty good way to get
eaten, especially with him tasting her hair...She stiffened, and put her fists on her hips. "Who you callin' 'false,' buddy?! I...look real young for my age, the kids all grew up and moved away. They
never call! You know how kids are. 'False matriarch,' HMMMF!"
Spirit — Today at 12:00 PM
Malika blinked. "Ermm...'' They stared at their hand. Then lowered it, wiping it off. "If it helps, he calls me that, too.'' Malika whispered with a slight lean-in. "I think the only TRUE Matriarch here is Captain Jez.'' It still felt so informal, ugh! But, that was the request. "Anyways... Thanks for the help with the airlock,'' Malika concluded. "I'm just gonna go... scan the chore chart,'' they decided. Indeed, they moved to the chart and held up their watch. A blue and pink light shone over it whilst Malika wondered just
how old the girl was. Had she mistakenly gotten excited over a potential peer? The
kids had moved away? Though by definition, Malika was also older... What age was she at, now? Fifteen... sixteen? Didn't matter. They'd never go beyond fourteen, in both mind and body. It just didn't matter.
littlekreen — Today at 12:00 PM
The pedipalps crossed in front of his 'face' as a gesture of restraint, at least for them, "You are a matriarch, but you are not my matriarch. The captain is the resident Honored Matriarch. It is the best translation from Quietus." He didn't have to pivot his body far to see directly behind him to Malika, "These would shatter your forearms if you fired them, false matriarch. I think it is best if delegate Alex is corrrect on the matter. I cannot fire them in the ship but I carry my weapons with me to service."
Zarko Straadi — Today at 12:07 PM
"So...you go around calling everybody you meet 'false matriarch?' And you don't just have a word for not-a-matriarch?" she asked. "Seems kinda waddle-headed to me," she muttered under her breath. "But...I'm not actually a matriarch, OK, so please don't eat me or sic MinOrtho on me, OK? I'll...be going now," she said, ducking past Jaunt's hulking form to get into the galley before she failed the tact-with-unknown-species thing
too hardcore.
Not that she was doing so well with tact-with-familiar-ish-probably-species. "Uh, sorry," she said, offering the girl a hand. She'd been so...distracted was a bit of an understatement, but nonetheless...with GIANT SCARY SPIDER she hadn't really heard much of what the fast-talking (in
two voices) girl had said, and she'd missed her handshake.
Spirit — Today at 12:10 PM
Malika looked back from their scan, gulping. "Ah... right.'' A short, sharp
BZT from the watch told them to shut up now, before they insisted it was no big deal! Because for a normal person, it'd totally be a big deal. They watched the girl go. The lights vanished back into their watch and they shrugged. "Well, good luck with your weapons,'' they told Jaunt, before also going past him. Only to be surprised that the girl was waiting for her and offering a handshake back! "Oh, hi!'' They said, gladly taking the handshake. "Soooo....'' Malika said nothing and Alex cleared their throat. "
Sooooo...... This is Malika.'' "Oh! Oh, yes, hi! I'm Malika, this is Alex.'' At Alex's introduction, they held up their pink screened watch. "They're an AI.'' "I think that's kind of obvious to see,'' Alex proclaimed in a dry voice. "Right... well... there you have it.''
Lucky, Phantom of the Discord — Today at 12:12 PM
CHAOS would be browsing the local wares to see if any object or person caught his attention.
littlekreen — Today at 12:12 PM
The gardener tilted his head and spread the ridged mouthparts slightly, "We are herbivores, false matriarch Emry. Eating you is not only heresy it would make me sick. I am a high solder so Orthodoxy expects me to pay respect of title to Matriarchs." he watched her by peeping down below the roof of the door and waved with one pedipalp, "Have a good meal, false matriarch."
Zarko Straadi — Today at 12:15 PM
"Oh--alright then," she said over her shoulder to Jaunt. "I taste
awful too. Uh...bye?" she said, waving back, then turned back to Malika and Alex.
"I'm Emry," she said. "It's nice to meet you both.
Spirit — Today at 12:17 PM
Malika coughed in a failed attempt to hold in a laugh, sputtering slightly. With a pushed down smile, they waved back to Jaunt before he'd go. Well, that was hopefully one matter solved. "Yeah, nice to meet you,'' Malika said. "So, I heard on comms yesterday, you have your own ship, right? That's so cool. Well, I'm going to offer you the same thing I did Jaunt. If you need any help with upkeep, I can try my very best to help. But I understand wanting to keep your own things up, so this is where I'll leave it.'' Malika said.
littlekreen — Today at 12:23 PM
Jaunt skittered through the halls as he left through the airlock and didn't pay much attention to the stares from alarmed dock crew at a large creature having to squeeze sideways through the opening. A grizzled maintenance worker started hacking loudly when Jaunt passed a maintience hatch having to evict the cigarette he'd swallowed as Jaunt just climbed up the dock wall to the next floor. The tiny elevators were cramped and he didn't want to squeeze in there any more than others wanted to stand almost surrounded by a huge blood-red spiny spider in a tiny people-moving container. He changed from local vox to ship comms as he reached out to the Captain, "Do you need any consumables for your person, Honored Matriarch Jezebel? I have a military requisition account for incidentals."
Zarko Straadi — Today at 12:30 PM
"Yeah--the
Amethyst Phoenix, she's a Firedrake Class multi-role fighter. Oh--she/her. My pronouns, not the
Phoenix's, but I call her 'she' too. I'm normally pretty fanatical about 'nobody touches my baby!' but I might take you up on that at some point. So, your AI...fully sapient?" she asked. "The
Phoenix has one, but it's a non-sapient narrow AI that can do natural language and fightercraft stuff and autopilot, but can't make kill-decisions."
Diana Ò◇ÓOP — Today at 12:32 PM
As expected, Jaunt found Jezebel out on the dock attempting to hunt down that new contract and so far... not having any luck. At least not with cargo she was WILLING to take. She was about to shake her head to Jaunt's query when a peciliar look spread across her features."...we might want to equip Applejack with some new weapon and defense sets. That mercenary we took on board will be handy, but I got a feeling we might be in for some trouble soon. This isn't a fighting crew, we'll need all the protection we can get..."
Spirit — Today at 12:33 PM
Malika couldn't help but smile at that. Pronouns! Well, would you look at that! "They/them, sometimes she,'' they replied back. "Same for me,'' Alex replied. "And yes, I am fully sentient. You can just talk to me, thank you.'' Malika cleared their throat, giving the screen a small tap. That... sounded rather rude. At least, to those who did not know Alex as well yet. "I can understand that,'' Malika said, even though they could, in fact, NOT understand all those classifications and roles. "I never let anyone touch my stuff, either. But if you need any upgrades or ideas, or even just simple fixes, I can do that. Only if you want to, though. I promise I won't do anything unless
you ask me. Because, well... because, of course.'' No kill... No kill. No. Kill. Oh. Well. Well then. Malika's breath quickened a bit. ....Was Emry onto them already?! How...? But no, she was just talking about her
ship. Not... not about Alex or Malika. Right? Darn it. "...Thanks for the pronouns,'' Malika eventually managed to say.
Zarko Straadi — Today at 12:41 PM
For a second there, Malika went a little weird. But then they seemed to come back. "You're welcome," Emry said. "So, you're mechanics then? For the ship, I mean?" she said, giving a look around the galley to indicate the Applejack.
littlekreen — Today at 12:42 PM
Jaunt kept pace with captain as he called out in Quietus to see if anything responded. A faint chirp from some nearby compatible machine asked for a check-in and Jaunt logged his presence there and that the honored matriarch was healthy. The matriarchs knew who he was assigned to and all else was opsec. He flipped the channel to vox again and replied to Honored Matriarch Jezebel as the creature of military was in his element, "Hardpoints are there but I do not think they are suited for high impulse weapons. You may have to take energy weapons. I suggest either recoil-compensated light weapons, plasma hardpoints, or internal capacitor laser point defense." He gestured putting a pedipalp through his hands making a ring, "Missle weapons are possible but it would need modifying a magazine through the hull. So single use."
Lucky, Phantom of the Discord — Today at 12:42 PM
CHAOS would tilt his head and found a pretty blue thing and would tap its gooey "hands" to ask the stall owner the price
Spirit — Today at 12:44 PM
"Mmm... Well, I don't know. But I work here. I think.'' "Yes!'' Alex hastily interfered. "You do, you work here. And yes, the work you do is akin to a mechanic. I, however, am just along for the ride.'' "Oh, but not in a stowaway manner!'' Malika quickly assured. "Just... here.'' "I do not work here and I can do nothing with credits.'' "Technically you could spend them.'' "If you get them.'' "Yeah... Anyways, what about you? I didn't properly hear the comms after the whole situation in the airlock... You work here too, now?''
Zarko Straadi — Today at 12:47 PM
"Sortof," Emry replied. "I'm the fighter escort. For room and board, right now I guess? I've found the room, so now I'm checking out the 'board,'" she said, as she started checking cupboards for anything to eat, or eat with/on, should she find the dishes and utensils first. "Have you eaten yet?"
Diana Ò◇ÓOP — Today at 12:48 PM
Jezebel just blinked at Jaunt for a moment. ...she honestly no freaking clue what he'd just listed off, it all sounded like gobbledegook to her! Once again proving she was far out of her element when it came to being a Captain, instead of the desk clerk where she belonged. Back at the office listening to Janet gossip, instead of trying to figure out how to manage a ship full of misfits and get back in one piece."...I'm just going to put you in charge of retrofitting anything we need on Applejack in terms of security. I still have to hunt us down another shipment of cargo. Else we're not going to be able to pay for the trek back home."
Lucky, Phantom of the Discord — Today at 12:52 PM
CHAOS was obviously very… they took the blue thing as their own when the stall owner didn't answer.
Spirit — Today at 12:53 PM
Malika nodded. "That sounds like a cool job,'' they said. But in reality, they shuddered at the fights they'd been through, blinking hard. This was NOT the time to cry, even if Malika could already feel their eyes pushing and their breath shuddering. "Huh? Oh, no, I haven't yet. I don't need to-'' BZT. "Yes, you do.'' "I mean, I'm not hungry.'' "When did you even eat for the last time? Malika, you have GOT to eat.'' "Yeah, well, I'm fine,'' they assured. Alex just scoffed. "Besides, there's a lot more to do here than just eating. Alex, can you pull up those schematics again?'' With a sigh, the AI did just what they had been asked. "See! So many damages... even though they're small, I'd better get on top of them. I'll also let Captain Jez know that the galley is pretty much empty...''
littlekreen — Today at 12:56 PM
"I can always get you home, at least," Jaunt added with a tilt of his head to get both eyes on her, "though not necessarily with your ship. One of your rights of me as an Honored Matriarch. I will pick up a point defense and light ballistic mount for the ship, Honored Matriarch. Some cameras in the hold I think I would like to add this time."
Zarko Straadi — Today at 1:03 PM
"Hey, are you OK?" Emry said. She recognized that sort of sudden freakout; she had them herself sometimes when the past didn't want to stay buried. Especially whenever she heard a child scream, or--she shook her head to clear it, trying to follow the pair's rapid conversation."Look...everybody else is kinda treating this like shore leave, I think? Maybe we could go have a look around? And you might as well tell Her Imperial Majesty Honored Matriarch Jezebel the First that the galley is
empty."
Spirit — Today at 1:08 PM
"Hm? Oh... yeah, I'm sure.''Wait, that wasn't about the food. "No, I mean, I'm fine. Yeah.'' Malika tried to shake it off and uncrossed their arms, pushing themself up the counter. "Yeah, most of the crew is on the market right now. I, however, have no money.'' To present it, they unfolded their data pad and held it up. The screen -as much as it was a screen as a hologram- indeed showed zero with a credit sign next to it. "So, it has no use. Plus, I
really need to get onto those small damages,'' they groaned. Alex, however, jumped in. "Well, look, what can it hurt? As far as I have seen the market is messy. Maybe there'll be some scrap to collect?'' Alex's attempt worked. Malika's eyes glazed over, then lit up a little. "Oh, yeah! Scrap,'' they sighed contentedly. Then, their face fell. "...But, nevermind, because I have no place to put it.'' They sighed again, only to let a short laugh be known. "Yeah, I was planning on it. You might not want to let her hear you call her that, though. She told me to just call her 'Captain Jez'. Anyway, if you wanna go, I'll be right behind you. Maybe I can find something small to fit in one of my pockets,'' they mumbled. "I'll just go let the Captain know the galley is empty. I swear, I'm right behind you!!'' And off they went to find the Captain, soon enough clearing their throat again. "Captain? Very sorry to disturb you. Emry and me wanted to let you know that the galley is uh... Well, it's pretty much ah...'' "It's empty.'' Alex said, matter of fact.
Diana Ò◇ÓOP — Today at 1:12 PM
Jez was not about to ask Jaunt how he meant to get them all home if she couldn't keep the ship in one piece. These spider people often had a really odd sense of what worked, and that tended to conflict with humanoid species...!"Uh... yeah! You work on that then!" she said to Jaunty. ...only to have Malika come up and announce the galley was void of food. Softly cursing under her breath as she shuffled through all of her pockets to produce a small drive. Jez was hesitant at first, but finally held out for Malika."This is... personal funds, so don't go wild. Purchase enough nonperishables to feed a crew of..." she counted in her head. "Eight. For a few days. Don't worry about water, we have plenty of that."
Spirit — Today at 1:17 PM
Malika's eyes widened as they looked at the drive. "Right, oh, okay, well, um...'' "We can handle it,'' Alex jumped in. "So, one person eats three to five pounds. Not going wild, that means three. Three times eight is 24 pounds per day, which should lead us to how many days we'll go. A few days, so that's less than a week. I think five days will do. That is 120 pounds of food,'' Alex rambled. "I had that calculated by the time you said 'don't'! I just had to put it in human terms for your minds.'' "Hrm,'' Malika grumbled, already lost with the numbers that had shown up and flied past when Alex did this. They cautiously took the drive, hesitated and looked up, then tried to ask a question but instead... decided to see it as a task, nodded, and walked off back to meet Emry outside as promised. "44 minutes left,'' Alex warned, ''as of right now.'' "Got it. Find food, go back, don't get left behind with the Captain's funds.'' "Or,'' Alex huffed, ''how about we don't get left behind
at all?'' "...That'd be nice. Hey, Emry!! I've got money for food.'' Alex's screen pulsed. "Would you like to go out and acoompany us on our
mission?'' "It's just an errand...'' Malika mumbled. "Mission sounds better. So what do you say?''
littlekreen — Today at 1:18 PM
Gardeners didn't advertise that the Matriarchs could quicken small volumes at interstellar distances as it worried nations about mercenaries entering facilities. That was a valid concern, of course, but they'd rather nobody plan for them to do that. It would also cost him a fair bit of credits but the discount for a matriarch coming with them in an emergency was at least significant. He said of it as he looked at the other two, "I have to pick up my hard tack and bread stone. My food is too high in flourine for most species. If you found powdered pucks somewhere that is not human food. I can eat almost anything that's a vegetable and not rotten to save cost on the Honored Matiarch."
Zarko Straadi — Today at 1:27 PM
"Oh yeah.
Totallllly a 'mission!'" Emry replied. "I don't think the Cap is gonna leave us behind if we've got her creds and all the food. Worst case scenario, we eat well until what's left can fit in the
Phoenix's cargo compartment, and she's got a wizzo seat you two would fit in just fine."
Spirit — Today at 1:31 PM
Malika couldn't help but laugh. "
What?" They asked. "You heard her!'' Alex said. "And the best thing is, I don't even require any space!'' They proudly announced, their screen pulsing again. "Well, for now-'' "I've ran calculations even on Jaunt's body mass and I know exactly what we need. Leave it to me,'' Alex offered. "Never been good with numbers, so, sure. As I was saying, Jaunt, Captain Jez said nonperishable, so I don't think vegetables will be a thing. We'll totally find you some uh, powdered pucks, though.'' Malika promised. Saving costs on someone else's accounts seemed like the best thing Jaunt could have offered her at the moment. And so, Malika set out in search of food. Which was, indeed according to Alex, a very real and very important mission. Next problem? How to shop for food if you never actually used food, unless you were quite literally starting to starve? Malika would just have to subtly try to rely on the person that DID eat food here, if Emry even ate food. Most people did, right? At least whatever portions Malika ate could be saved, or they could just spare expense and not buy it...? "So...'' Malika said. "I'm uh, I'm sorry about your kids.''
littlekreen — Today at 1:36 PM
Jaunt looked over to Malika, "If delegate prefers, high soldier gardeners can digest vegetable oil but only as a supplement. It has the caloric density of gasoline."
Zarko Straadi — Today at 1:41 PM
"Huh? Oh! I..." But GIANT SCARY SPIDER was
right there, so now was not a good time to explain about the 'kids.' She turned to him."So...you're a 'high soldier gardener?' The vegetables on your planet must be the toughest in the Galaxy," she said to him.
littlekreen — Today at 1:46 PM
The gardener made the equivlent of a shrug by clacking the tips of the two blade arms together, "Well, the oppressors tried to shape us as bioweapons. We resisted the nanite bomb and so did enough of our biosphere after the" He paused trying to think of a way to describe a nation scale wall of buried charnel to convince nanites they shouldn't destroy territory past a point, "violent mitigation strategy to shut it down. The bread stone we eat is fungus that grows on coal and adapted to eat the nanites. The highest matriarch is nature, and does not surrender easily."
Lucky, Phantom of the Discord — Today at 1:49 PM
CHAOS would come back to the ship with his trinket. " I got blue shiny from nice men for free, " CHAOS told Jezbel. It was indeed a sapphire, not something that most shopkeepers would give away for free
Spirit — Today at 1:50 PM
Malika looked up and blinked. "Wow... you eat... fungus and coal....'' "Yep, shopping for you should be easy!'' Alex chimed. "If we find any coal and mushrooms, we'll be sure to buy them.'' Malika finally stopped at a food stall. "Hey, okay, so, um, big order here-'' Remembering everything, Alex rattled off some numbers, and after making a merchant very annoyed, Malika was about to grab this. "I think I could pull thi-'' "Malika, no. That is WELL over a hundred pounds, PLEASE do not try.'' Right. Super strength... not a human feat. Even with super strength... Still not possible. Malika's strength was only for combat. And they used it for tinkering. "STUPID THING!!'' Nearby, a guy was discarding of an automatic transporter and Malika sped off without a word. They spent a few moments fixing it, and then BOOM. Done. "Tadaa! We can use this!'' "How'd you do that?'' "Oh! Um, sorry, I can give it back-'' "Nah. Least I can do is let you borrow it. I'll take your food there.'' First thing Malika did was excuse herself with Emry -yes, leaving her with the 'scary spider'- and rush back. "Got your funds! The food is in,'' Malika said, peeking in before rushing off back to Emry. "Okay!'' They panted. "Ten minutes left and we are
in! Phew.'' Oh, how
scared they had been, terrified, to get left behind like that..."Alright, well, this has been fun, it has been
very nice to meet you... but um, I really gotta get on those small damages. Especially since we're departing and whatnot.'' Malika tried for a small wave before taking the data pad and rushing through the ship, trying to keep the poor thing together.
Lucky, Phantom of the Discord — Today at 1:53 PM
The small child would wonder outside of the ship, not knowing it was leaving at the same time CHAOS would enter the ship.
Zarko Straadi — Today at 2:00 PM
Wes seemed to be doing well enough searching for electronics in what appeared to be a safe part of the marketplace, so Ekadzati went off in search of medical supplies. Having found most of what she needed, she wandered back to the Applejack.Malika and Alex got through the grocery shopping in a whirlwind of activity, such that Emry hadn't even gotten a chance to grab something out of one of the packages for a quick tide-over snack. Oh well. Then she saw a woman coming toward her, carrying some bags of her own. Is she part of the--Their eyes met, and they both knew. Ekadzati's face briefly flashed a look of hope; Emry's pain. But then Malika and Alex were back. "You're with the Applejack?" Ekadzati asked. Emry nodded. She knew the other woman would want to talk to her in private at some point. She would just have to figure out what to say when that time came."Yeah, I guess we'd better get back," Emry said, turning to jog over to her fighter. "See you all aboard," she said.
littlekreen — Today at 2:01 PM
After a short trip to pick up some used machine gun hardpoints and a laser CWIS for missiles he tracked down a merchant that sold gardener ration packs. It was part of their contacts and merchants usually preferred large friendly tanks being known to stop by regularly in dangerous locales. Jaunt picked up the food crate with the blade arms as they got back with it and recognized the bread stone as a human-sized terrarium with its pillar of coal, UV lights, and softly pivoting fungus in organized circles. Tiny snails with metal shells occasionally lurking between them and eating mycellium. Whenever the lights went out the mushrooms would glow beneath the transparent cover. He bolted it to the floor in the mess hall so it didn't decide to roll off and break. A faint sign was added to it, 'Gardener food. Poisonous to humans.'
Zarko Straadi — Today at 2:05 PM
Ekadzati nodded. The others seemed to be in a great hurry, though she couldn't recall the Captain giving a deadline. To the contrary, it seemed that she would be busy for some time dealing with Amelia's situation, and finding a new gig. Ekadzati gave the girl a nod and started back toward the ship at her own pace. That's when she noticed a small child wandering alone, looking lost. She headed towards him, and crouched to his level. "Are your parents lost, dear?" she asked. A quick glance around revealed no one crying out or searching for a lost child.
Lucky, Phantom of the Discord — Today at 2:06 PM
The child looked confused at the woman. " My parents aren't lost, I just don't know where they are"
Zarko Straadi — Today at 2:07 PM
Ekadzati smiled. "Alright, where was the last place you saw them?"
Lucky, Phantom of the Discord — Today at 2:08 PM
The small child would think for a moment. " Back before I saw goo and then went black and woke up on the ship here."
Spirit — Today at 2:08 PM
Malika continued to try their best upkeeping the ship. Crossing wires here. Downloading data there, uploading it somewhere. They were speedwalking all over the ship, rushing endlessly from one task to the other. Soon, Malika's mind sunk back in the comfortable fixation of
tasks, one after the other coming up on their data pad. This... this was nice. This was
comfortable.
Zarko Straadi — Today at 2:09 PM
"That ship?" Ekadzati said, pointing toward the
Applejack. "Do you remember what planet your parents live on? What city?"
Lucky, Phantom of the Discord — Today at 2:10 PM
The child would nod their head. " the blue one with all the bright lights," the child replied.
littlekreen — Today at 2:12 PM
Jaunt would wander through with a vertical shelf of a mushroom with one shiny black side after tracking down where the remaining crew had gone. the mushroom and its crunching mushroom noises smelled faintly of fruity truffles as someone arrived to hand him a weapons case. He skittered over to Ekadazi and the voice from behind unaffected by his eating, "This is the stowaway then?"
Zarko Straadi — Today at 2:14 PM
"Stowaway?" Ekadzati replied. "The child appears to have had his body taken over by the 'goo' you were having trouble with in the Cargo Bay, but he does not remember anything from those times. I would like to be able to return him to his parents, if that is possible."
- She turned back to the child. "Do you remember what planet your parents live on?"
Lucky, Phantom of the Discord — Today at 2:20 PM
The child would offer a shrug. " My parents always called it home, so I don't know its name."
Zarko Straadi — Today at 2:22 PM
Ekadzati turned to Jaunt. "Do you know what planet we picked him up on?"
Then she turned back to the child. "Do you know the name of the city you live in?"
The child seemed to be having a hard time coming up with an answer at the moment, and it looked like Captain Jez and the crew were getting ready for takeoff. "Alright, why don't you just come with me, I'll keep you safe until we can figure out how to get you home, alright?" she said, and started ushering the child back to the ship. "Were you able to deal with the 'goo?'" she asked Jaunt.
Lucky, Phantom of the Discord — Today at 2:32 PM
The child would shrug again. " I would like that very much."
littlekreen — Today at 2:41 PM
Jaunt couldn't nod like humans did and made a throat cutting gesture with one hand as the closest approximate, "the liquid material was in their body or suit of the taller one. I cannot attack something inside the body of the matriarch. I am not sure where the child came from exactly. The ship is porous."
Lucky, Phantom of the Discord — Today at 2:45 PM
CHAOS stuck out their tongue from the safe resting spot wit the gem at Jaunt and the others.
Zarko Straadi — Today at 2:45 PM
'Porous' seemed like a rather disturbing attribute to apply to a spaceship, but Ekadzati guessed that Jaunt was referring to crew (and at least one stowaway) joining and leaving with little in the way of bureaucratic supervision. She herself had come aboard without any biometrics scans, DNA samples, or written contracts of the long and complicated sort, as might be the case with a more 'reputable' ship. "Come on then, let's go," she said, placing a gentle hand on the child's shoulder as she led him aboard.
Diana Ò◇ÓOP — Today at 2:46 PM
By luck, everyone made it back to the ship on time and absolutely nothing went wrong at all. Not a thing. There's no kidnapped kid on that ship. A space fugative. An escaped experiment. Strange cargo. Stolen artifacts. Other Problems. No sirree, everything is going well or the crew of the Applejack! Well, except one small issue. By the time the captain got a new cargo contract and was certain everyone was loaded into the ship, the Big Boss finally gave her a callback. The jist of it? DELIVER THAT ORIGINAL CARGO OR THERE WON'T JUST BE MONEY ON THE LINE, THERE WILL BE LIVES ON THE CHOPPING BLOCK.What will happen to our motely crew of misfits? FIND OUT NEXT TIME ON SPACE BOUNTY EXPRESS.